Princess of Darkness
by GNFreak
Summary: FemNaru. Slow Build. He said if I join him then my dreams will come true and teach me magic. Because of him, I lived, I learned, I killed…until I finally realize what he told me was a lie. I used to be a member of Oracion Seis…I am Naru Uzumaki, The Princess of Darkness.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or Naruto. If I did I would find some way to get Naruto out of Konoha and into Earthland. As it is I shall make do.

A/N: I know it has been a long time since I have updated but I've decided to do a rewrite Princess of Darkness.

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No matter where she ran, Naru Namikaze could hear the villager's screams and screeches as the masked men murdered them or drag them to the carriages. Not once did she turn her back around to look at the screaming villager or stop to breath. There was no time for her to stop. To stop meant they would catch her, drag her to the carriage or murder her in cold blood.

She felt her blood turn cold when she caught sight of the masked man grabbing one of the kids, one of her friends, and hauling him to a cart filled with the other kids and the other villagers. She could feel water streaming down her cheeks when one of the kids looked at her, eyes widened with hope as if hoping she would save them.

Without another word, Naru started to run as fast as her legs could take her, not looking back to the crying kids. Her heart broke at each step she took but Naru gulped it down and continued to run away from them, muttering under her breath a little prayer to Kami, who she wished would let her not to have her friend's fate.

However, it seemed Kami would not allow it.

She tumbled, cried out in pain, and looked up to the dark cloudy sky when she hit a small rock. She could hear her leg bone crack, signalling that either her leg was broken or that it was now out of position. It did not matter either way because the moment she yelled, she had told the masked men where she was.

She closed her eyes and mutter a little prayer that her mother taught her. She prayed to Kami, to the fates or to any deity that was listening to her. She prayed out loud when she heard the screams of her parent. She prayed that this would end, that this was nothing but a dream but most of all that her parents would make out of this alive. She only stopped praying when her parents' screams stopped and heard the men cruel laughter that began right where her parents' screams ended.

Naru felt a lump being formed in her throat and started to whimper as she realized what their laughter meant. Her strong parents were gone. They left her all alone with nobody to take her. By now her older adopted brother was either dead or had been taken away by these cruel people, leaving her alone to figure out what her fate might be.

Would she die here? She asked herself.

She hoped not.

She did not want to die when her parents' killers were still out there, basking in her parents' deaths.

Her whole body stiffened when she heard a cold, cruel laugh that seemed to becoming louder as each second passed. She gulped when she caught sight of the owner of this vile laugh. He was smiling at her but it not like her father's warm smiles, it was a smile that promised many years worth of pain. It was a smile so evil and cruel that it made her want to curl into a little ball and wait for him to murder her. She screamed when she saw the sword in his hands and screamed louder when the other kids started to scream as well.

Her screams soon turned to a laughter when she realized just how bad the situation was for her. Her home was destroyed. Her parents were dead. She did not know if her brother was alive or dead. Her friends were either murdered or had been taken away from the village. She only stopped laughing when the man grabbed her by the neck.

She thrashed and kicked him but not once did the man loosen his hold on her neck. If anything, his grip on her neck was tighter. She felt her lungs burned, scrotching as if to tell her that her life was going to get worse now.

She closed her eyes.

_What are they going to do to me?_ Naru asked herself as the men shoved her into the cart. _Am I going to die here? _

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**Chapter 1**

The Tower of Heaven was a cruel place that was known to torture everyone who inhabited it. To the people who were forced to work there, the tower served as a reminder of what they had lost: their freedom and their homes. Every slave dreamt of the day where they would be free to do as they wish, where they could go back to their homes. However, none of them dreamed that as much as Naru Namikaze. For the young blond, it had been a terrible long three years since she lost her parents and brother as well as the last time she had stepped out of the tower.

The young blond dreamt of the days where she screamed and jumped on her older brother as she pleaded for him to play with her. She dreamt of her mother's soothing voice and her stories of her old village. She dreamt of her father singing off pitch as he came back from work, giving her one of his big smiles before tickling her stomach without mercy.

She shook her head at her thoughts and looked at Konohamaru, who was now crying silently for his mother, and then to the sobbing faces of Sakura and Hinata. Looking at their faces reminded her of their current situation. She did not have her parents with her anymore. What she had now were her friends, her fellow slaves and the guards. The guards who sometimes whispered about how they kill and who they had killed, which always brought back the bitter memories of her parents' death.

She gritted her teeth, tightened her grip on the prison's bars as she tried to push back the horrible memories. She looked at her friends, who were now crowding on the crying boy. Hinata was hugging the boy while Sakura clung onto Sasuke while Ino, Shikamaru and Choji huddled against each other. It was only Kiba who was not standing close to anyone, looking uncertain on what to do.

"Naru-neechan, I want to go home! I want to see my Kaa-chan!" Konohamaru cried, looking at her with tear-stained eyes. "Why can't we go back home? Why are they making us do this?"

Naru gulped and tried to steady her shaking hands as she tried to think of a way to answer his question. Sasuke grimaced and looked at her with concern while everyone else suddenly stood still and ceased their talking at his question.

"Konohamaru-kun…we can't see our parents anymore," Hinata whispered, voicing out everyone's thoughts. "They are gone…these people murdered our parents and took us in because we were young and strong enough to do this task. These monsters saw it fit to destroy our homes, our village, our lives…our families."

"So…Kaa-chan is never coming back?" Konohamaru asked, rubbing his eyes at them.

Naru nodded, walked over to the little boy before giving him a tight hug. Konohamaru relaxed into the hug, sobbing on her ragged shirt for the mother he lost and never really knew. She rubbed his back, closing her eyes as she stopped herself from crying out loud for the parents and brother she loved so dearly.

"We will get out of here Konohamaru," Naru declared, giving the boy a smile before giving the others a determined look. The little boy beamed at her words while everyone else gaped at her words. "I will make sure that we will get out of this hell hole and for us to go to a place where we can be finally free, a place where we do not have to live in fear."

The kids gasped at her words, furiously shaking their heads at her and giving her looks that said she was crazy for even thinking like that. Only Sasuke and Konohamaru did not give her such looks. The younger boy was giving her a hopeful look, eyes so wide with hope that Naru knew without doubt that she wanted that look to stay. Sasuke, on the other hand, simply raised his eyebrow at her.

"It's impossible for us to escape from here Naru!" Kiba yelled. "Y'know what they will do to us if we get caught even planning? If we fail to escape from here then our treatment will be even worse! We might lose a leg!"

"So what! Our lives here already suck!" Naru snapped, clenching her hands into a fist. "I don't want us to be stuck here for the rest of our lives! Don't you want to see the outside world? Do you want to stay here for the rest of your life? Do you want to be surrounded by the people who murdered our families?"

Kiba stared at her and made no attempts in answering her question but it was enough for Naru to know what he was thinking. She glanced at the others, who looked away from her. She gritted her teeth, ran her hand through her hair as she tried to figure out ways to get them to see her point. She straightened her back when she felt a familiar hand on her shoulder. She turned her body around, smiling bitterly at Sasuke, who nodded his head at her. She smiled softly when Konohamaru placed his hands onto her lap.

"Naru, do you realize just how dangerous it is just to make an escape plan?" Sasuke asked. He threw his hands up to the air when Naru shot him an irritated look. "I want to be free like you but there is a huge chance that we will get punish for this."

"And this isn't punishment in itself?" Naru hissed, pointing to his bruised arms and then to Konohamaru's skinny fame. "You know that this is killing us right? If this continues then none of us live to be sixteen!"

"Naru…" Hinata said softly.

"Why must we give up before we even try?" Naru asked them, pacing back and forth in their prison. "Don't you remember the words of the village leader, the words of my father? He said that anything is possible as long as we don't give up! So why are we giving up?"

None of them answer her question, giving her pitying looks at the reminder of her father. She shook her head, gripped the butterfly necklace that clung to her as she stared into her friends' eyes. Would they be like this if their siblings and parents were here? Would they have been here if they had simply run faster? Would any of this happen if the mages in their village had been stronger?

"Naru…we just can't take the risk," Sakura whispered sombrely. "You know what happens to the people that got caught escaping! None of us wants to see you get hurt by this!"

She stared at her friend's bright frightened green eyes and then to Konohamaru. She felt her heart tightened at the sight of his longing look as he stared out at the flying birds. She ruffled his hair and felt her heart lightened when he gave her a smile. She gave him a smile and then glanced at her sullen friends, giving them a bitter smile.

"I don't care if I get hurt! I want us to get out of here! I want everyone of us to be happy, to try being the people who we were before all this shit happened," Naru declared. "Do you remember the times when we all joke around? Don't you miss complaining about school? Hell do you even miss going back to school? Don't you miss being able to walk around outside without the fear being whipped and being able to say what is in your mind?"

"Yes!" Ino grinned. "Don't you remember how we used to talk about the boys in the class? And how we used to go over to each other's houses to play games?"

"Or how we used to eat so much food!" Choji cried, licking his lips as he pictured a table filled with so much food.

They all looked at each other before breaking into laughter at Choji's words. Choji grinned and laughed alongside them. Only Naru didn't laugh but the girl did have a smile on her face as she listened to her friends laugh. It had taken them only three years now to laugh like this again. Her friends laughing and being happy was what Naru wanted things to be like but she knew as long as they stayed here then all of that would be gone.

She didn't want that to happen.

"I miss playing shogi and watching the clouds," Shikamaru admitted.

"Of course you do," Ino muttered. "Honestly, you're so lazy…always doing the bare minimum amount of work. I bet if we ever get free then you'll go back to being your lazy self."

"Troublesome…at least I don't gossip whenever I get the chance," he retorted.

Ino scowled at his comment while everyone else laughed at the truth of his words. They glanced at each other before gazing out at the window, where they could hear the birds chirping. Naru hated this. She hated the fact none of her friends were like their usual selves. All of them had been forced to change because of this place. Sasuke, who used to be the most arrogant guy in their class, had learnt to be humble. Shikamaru, who was the laziest person she had ever met, was slowly becoming less lazy. Choji was becoming thinner and wasn't eating as much as before. Sakura, Ino and Hinata no longer smiled and in the case of Ino and Sakura looked at the boys with hearts in their eyes. Konohamaru…he was the worst one yet. Three years ago, he had the biggest smile in the village and would follow her around everywhere, calling out 'Nee-chan'. Now of days, he didn't smile at her and rarely did he follow her.

"I want to see my brother," Sasuke informed them.

Naru nodded. "We are all wishing for something but we're not going to get it! Not unless we get out of this hellhole! If we want all of those things back then we need to escape! If our parents were in our shoes, what would have they done?"

All of them avoided her gaze except for Sasuke who had curled his lips into a smirk. She grinned, knowing the smirk right there was a sign that the old Sasuke was still there, that her childhood friend hadn't stopped being his arrogant self. It seemed like her worries of him never going back to his usual self was for nothing. There was just enough hope that maybe just maybe everyone here could revert back to their old ways.

Shaking her head, Naru glanced at Shikamaru and grinned at the familiar sight of Shikamaru doing his thinking position. Choji looked at his best friend with a thoughtful look while Sakura and Ino gave Naru a hesitant look that told her everything she needed to know about their thoughts on this. She glanced at Hinata, who chewed on her lips as she stared at her, and the to Kiba, who growled at her.

"Let us just say we agree with your idea, how do we get out of this hellhole Naru?" Kiba asked.

Naru rubbed her neck. "I h-haven't made a plan."

Everyone shook their head at her and crossed their arms at her. She scrunched her nose and scowled. "I need everyone help to do a plan," she snapped. "I'm not a genius! I can't make a plan by myself! I need everyone to help me do—"

"You're the one who is suggesting that we escape from here! And you're telling us you don't have a plan—"

"This is going to be troublesome but what do you need Naru?" Shikamaru asked, stopping Kiba before he could say anything that could potentially make the girl furious.

She frowned. "Before we even start thinking of escaping, we need to have a layout of this place and the shifts of the guards."

"That's the easy bit!" Kiba boasted. "We've been here for a long time so we know their timetable—"

"It isn't that easy baka," Ino snapped. "We only know bits and pieces of their timetable, we don't know the full timetable of the guards since we're always out."

"Not only that," Hinata said. "We never get the same guards, it changes from day to day and we also need to know which exit is the least guarded, we also—"

"Do you realize what you guys are saying!" Sakura screeched. "We can't simply escape from here! What's going to happen to us if they catch us huh? They're going to punish us or have you forgotten? You heard what happen to the people they punish right? You heard their screams? Are you really going to take that risk? Do you want their punishment?"

They grimaced at her words.

Naru rubbed her chin as she gazed at her pink-haired friend, who rubbed her bruise knuckles as she looked away from her gaze. Punishment. That was the one word every slave in the Tower of Heaven knew so well. Every night as they tried to sleep, they heard the cries and screams of everyone who got punished. In fact, Naru had been punished a few times but luckily, her mother's side of the family had an ability that made it very easy for them to heal. Fortunately, Naru inherited that ability or else she would have a lot more scars then everyone else.

Still, should she take the chance of everyone getting punished? The memory of Konohamaru being kicked and yelled at for not working hard enough rushed through her mind. She shook her head, looking up at the clear night sky. The risk may be great but they were going to fight for a good cause: their freedom.

"Can anyone of you remember the faces of your parents? But how long have we been under their thumb? How long has it been since our village was burnt to the ground and murdered our families?" Naru asked. "Can we remember a day where we didn't work? Answer that!"

Sakura didn't answer but that was all Naru needed to continue on.

"I know the consequences Sakura-chan," Naru whispered, rubbing her scared arms. "I just can't stand seeing all of you guys suffering that I don't give a damn about it. I want us to escape and be free. I'm scared of being punished don't get me wrong but…looking at your faces make me scared of losing all of you guys and that is worse then punishment."

"But we'll get punish…" Sakura protested.

"If that ever happens…I'll take the blame for it," Naru informed her, gulping down the lump being formed in her throat. "I'm not going to let anyone of you guys get hurt from my plans."

"Dobe, we're not allowing you to take all the blame."

The blond-haired girl bit down her lips to stop herself from crying when she saw that everyone was in agreement with Sasuke. She shook her head. "Y'know that out of everyone here, I'm the only one capable of being able to recover from their punishments," she reminded him. "Besides I'm the one who suggested it and none of you wanted to do this so…I'll take the blame if we get caught."

"Dobe, you're bloody idiot if you think I will—"

"Alright," Shikamaru said.

"You're going to let the baka take all the blame!" Sasuke snarled, glaring at Naru.

"She raised a good point," Shikamaru pointed out. "Out of everyone here, Naru heals faster from any injury they give and has a very high pain tolerance."

Everyone frowned and glanced at Naru, who nodded her head. They chewed on their lips as they watched the smiling blond make a funny face to Konohamaru. Were they really going to allow Naru to take the fall? They had to ask themselves this. Naru had always been there for them and had always gotten into trouble for them. Could they allow Naru do this again?

"We need to distribute jobs to everyone," Shikamaru said, snapping everyone from their train of thought.

"Sasuke, Kiba and me will take the job of tracking them when we can," Naru said immediately, earning a smirk from the two boys themselves.

"I'll take the job of listening to their conversation," Ino said, flipping her hair at them.

Naru pursed her lips and glanced at Shikamaru, silently pleading with him to tell Ino otherwise but he shook his head at her and gave her a pointed look. She sighed. The older boy was right. She needed to trust Ino to do this but Naru couldn't help it. The older girl looked so frail and weak now due to all the work they had been forced to do. If she got caught then Naru was concerned that Ino might die from it.

"Sakura and I will make a plan of this place," Hinata said firmly.

"Which leaves Choji and me with the traps," Shikamaru said. "I wouldn't put it pass them to try and catch us as we try to escape."

"You do know that's the most difficult job to do," Ino pointed out. "Are you sure that you're up for it?"

"Out of all of us, Choji and me have the best chance of making sure that the traps will work and that plan will go without a hitch."

"He's right, Shikamaru is our residence genius…if anyone can make sure we can live through this then it's those two," Naru said, giving a curt nod to Shikamaru and Choji. Whenever she used to do pranks, she would get those two to help her do it. She gave the general plan to them but it was those two who would refine the details and make her think about what she had to do next, in order for her not to get caught by her father.

"How long do you think it will be before we can escape?" Sasuke asked.

Shikamaru sighed. "If we're efficient and don't get caught then we'll be out of here by next month."

Naru nodded and leaned her back against the wall before slumping her shoulders. She looked out at the full moon, closed her eyes and felt her eyelids become heavy as the memories of her parents and brother rushed through her mind. She could see her mother's radiant smile and hear her father's teasing voice as he called her mother 'motor-mouth'. She could almost feel her older brother's shoulders which always became tensed whenever she tried to hug him. The only thing, she couldn't remember were their smiling faces.

"How long has it been since our village was destroyed?" Naru asked.

"Too long," Hinata answered, gazing sadly up at the moon. "It's been too long since we were separated from our families…I wonder where Neji-niisan is and if imouto is alive."

"We all wonder if our families are alive," Naru answered. "You and Sasuke, at least have the knowledge that at least someone in your family is alive. The others and me have no idea on whether they are alive or at least know that we no longer have any living relatives."

"Naru-chan…"

"I'm fine Hinata-chan, don't worry," Naru smiled widely. "At least I've got you guys and that's enough."

Hinata pursed her lips and nodded her head slowly before gazing out at their prison doors. "I just hope that Neji-niisan is alright and imouto is ok. It'll be unpleasant if I learn they had the same fate as us."

Naru nodded in agreement, placed her hands behind her head and looked at the others to see their reactions. She felt her heart grow heavy when she noticed the strained look on Sasuke's face. Everyone had their worries and hopes that most of their friend survived. Naru hoped and prayed that Itachi, Neji, Shisui, Lee and Tenten were safe and happy wherever they were. Her friends didn't deserve to feel the pain of losing a loved one…Naru didn't want them to go through her pain.

Well, they would know soon if their friends were safe.

Hopefully by the end of the month, they would be out of here and everyone could find out what happened to their friends and relatives.

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As each day passed, Naru could feel her heart becoming more and more giddy despite all the labour they were forced to do. The day of their escape was coming soon. The sweet taste of freedom was just in her hands. In a matter of days, all of this suffering would be nothing but a distant memory for them. They could forget about this hellhole and do what they want. In just a matter of three days, seventy two hours, 4320 minutes, they were going to be out of this hellhole and be free to do what they want.

There was the question of where would they go after they escape. This was the one question Naru asked herself every time. _Do we all stick together? And what if we all want to go to different places? What do we do then? _She asked herself as she dug through the hard ground to find the Lacrima. She shook her head, paused in her work and rubbed her sleeves against her sweaty forehead. Looking at the other slaves as they worked under the blazing sun made her heart swell with regret. The other slaves had been here as long as she had, some of them had been born here while others had been here longer than she had.

Was it alright for her to leave them like this?

She gulped at the sight of the smirking guards that gazed at her as they rubbed their hands with the whip. Taking in a shaky breath, Naru grabbed hold of the shovel and started to dig even harder while keeping her head down at all cost. Showing them fear would do her and her friends no good. Besides, they were going to escape soon and all of this fear she had would be gone. She was going to be free from this.

Her distress must have been noticed because Sasuke was starting dig closer to her and kept looking around the area where all the guards were situated.

"What's matter with you dobe?" Sasuke asked under his breath, glancing at the guards who had now all turned their heads away from them.

She flickered her eyes to the other slaves, who kept their heads down as they dug through the hard ground. "What are we going to do when we get out of here Sasuke?" she asked, looking into the older boy's dark eyes. "We haven't planned anything for what will happen after we escape!"

He arched his eyebrows. "We'll see when we get out of here," he squinted his eyes as he looked up at the sky. "I don't know about the others…but I'm going to search for my brother and cousin, I need to know if they're alive or not. Is that all that's bothering you Naru?"

She chewed on her lip, feeling a headache formed as she tried to figure out whether she should tell him or not of her other concerns. The furrowed eyebrows and the fact he had visible concern for her made it hard for her not to confess to him. Could she really tell him? She didn't want to add more things on his plate. No, what was she thinking? Sasuke had been her best friend since they were in diapers.

If there was anyone Naru could ever tell her concerns to, it would be Sasuke. Not only was he her best friend but he didn't spill secrets and always knew how to read her. If her parents had wanted to know if she was lying about something then they would drag the older boy to their house and ask him to look at her and tell them if she was being honest or not.

"I'm worried about the other slaves," she quietly admitted, hitting the ground as much force as her trembling hands would allow her. "Is it wrong to leave them like this? They've been here longer then us, some of them came around the same time as us and even a few of them had been born here. Do you think we…"

"It's too dangerous Naru."

"I know it's too dangerous," Naru hissed. "It's just unfair for them to stay here. Everyone deserve a chance to escape from this hellhole. Half of the people who originally came with us are dead."

The dark-eyed boy opened his mouth to argue with her, already having arguments against on why they should not bring anymore people with them. She knew without even listening to him, his reasons would be good but no matter how she looked at it…these people were just going to keep suffering. She blinked her eyes when Sasuke shook his head and scowled at her.

What did he just say?

"You didn't listen a word I just say did you?" He asked her, scowling harder when she nodded her head. "It doesn't matter if you didn't hear it. You just need to know we will help them when we get out of here," he glanced at a trembling Ino and shook his head. "The first thing we need to do when we get out of here is get everyone who is sick to the nearest hospital. A good one if possible."

Nodding, Naru glanced at a pale Konohamaru. "Yes," she muttered, glancing at the little boy with concern. "Konohamaru and Ino especially need to go to hospital. I think the both of them caught something but I don't know what."

Sasuke glanced at the guards, who were now barking at the other slaves and slowly distance himself from her. "We need to stop talking," he muttered. "We'll discuss everything else with the others later tonight. Everything is going to be fine Naru."

She smiled at his words, feeling slightly reassured at the fact that everything was going to be fine. Yet looking at the other slaves, Naru had to wonder if it was truly right to not bring the others with them. Naru wondered if they were even going to make it out of this place and if they did, were they going to make it out without losing a piece of their body.

Even though Naru had her doubts, the blue-eyed girl knew there was no chance that she could back out now. Backing out now meant she was a coward and a liar, Naru Namikaze wasn't a coward or a liar.

…Or that what was she told herself.

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A/N: Please review.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or Naruto. If I did I would find some way to get Naruto out of Konoha and into Earthland. As it is I shall make do.**

**Author Note: I want to thank everyone that reviewed the last chapter and added this to their favourites and follows.**

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Crossing her legs and fiddling with her dirty blond hair, Naru stared blankly at the prison bars. In just a few short minutes, they were going to escape from this hellhole. In a few short minutes, they were all going to start their search on finding a home, a place where they all belonged and find the families they had lost. In a couple of minutes, they could regain the happiness they lost. They could have the dreams they were forced to give up. They were going to be finally free again…as long as nothing ruined their plans. A thing that was likely to happen to them with her terrible luck.

It was odd how she was now becoming so pessimistic about this. She had never been like this before. She used to be so optimistic even when they brought her here. She had a reason to be optimistic. To survive, Naru needed to be optimistic or else she would have died the moment she stepped into this hellhole. Her friends and the other slaves had always thought she was weird for being optimistic. They all had pointed out there was no reason to be optimistic in this place. This place just served as a reminder of what they had lost, of what was taken away from them. It didn't help all the slaves suffered every day in some way or form. Children had lost their parents here, parents had lost their kids while others had lost their friends in their time here. Just spending time here drained the life out of a person. It was impossible for a person to smile here.

She needed to smile or else she was going to break down.

Naru didn't know about her friends but every night she dreamt of her family being here with her, teasing her and hugging her as they told her she was going to be fine. Some nights, she dreamt the village had never burnt down to the ground. Occasionally, she dreamt her parents had defeated these people and that no one in their village was murdered in cold blood. She dreamt of a life where everything was so much easier for them. A life where there was no suffering, no pain and no labour. A world where they all still had their families. She dreamt of a time where they were in school, joking and teasing each other. She imagined of a world where Sasuke was still her arrogant friend, who was sometimes fun to hang around, where Shikamaru and Choji were her pranking buddies, helping her in her time of need. She saw a world where Hinata was still her stuttering self, who would always be polite to everyone.

She basically dreamt of the world where everything was back to normal.

She wanted her old life back.

Was it wrong for her to want her old life back? She couldn't change the past but her past had been so much better than her present situation. She rubbed her eyes when she felt the tears streaming down her face. She bit her lips, hoping the pain itself would stop the tears. There was no time for her to cry. They were all going to be free soon. They were going to be free from this torture. They were going to be free to be who they want to be, not to be forced to do some work that was meant for someone older then them. They were all going to be free from this evil place…just like they always dreamed. This freedom would allow them to become who they used to be. This freedom would give them hope that there's a better future for them and to find a place that they might belong again. With their village burned and family lost, they just needed to find a new home, a new place to belong to.

_A guild would be the right place,_ Naru mused as she stared at Konohamaru and the others,_ Tou-san said his old guild took him in when he lost everything. He used to say a mage guild was the best place to go if you had nowhere else to go to._

Before her father became the leader of Konoha, her father was first a part of a light guild and had been the best S-rank mage they had or so he claimed whenever he put her to bed. He used to run his hand through her hair as he told her about his old guild, who had became like a second family to him before going on about one of the adventures he had with his teammates. From there, he would go on and on about the crazy things his guild did before giving her a little smile and telling her as she closed her eyes that his old guild had healed him from his sorrow.

Just thinking of her father made her heart clenched with pain, made her want to curl into a little ball and just cry for the father she lost. Closing her eyes, she tried to picture her father but just trying to picture him was hard for her. She could still see his blond hair, the clothes he used to wear but she could not see his face. She felt something wet hitting her cheeks, falling down to her rags of her clothes. Numbly, Naru realized she was crying again. Rubbing her eyes, Naru stared up at the sky and wondered if she was going to forget her father, her adopted brother and her mother. If this continued, was she going to forget her life before this hell started? Forgetting her father meant she was slowly forgetting their village, the village that was home to so many wonderful memories. She didn't want to forget her parents, her village but most of all her happy memories.

She sighed.

Those happy memories alongside her friends were the only things keeping her going, keeping her from breaking down. Losing those memories meant a breakdown and a breakdown was the last damn thing she could afford now.

Shaking her head, Naru looked out of the prision bars and stared at the guard, who looked sound asleep. She glanced at her friends and gave them the hand signal, which they agreed for her to use as a signal to start their escape. Sasuke was the first to go, taking out the key they had managed to steal and using it to unlock their prison. He looked around the area before giving them the signal that told it was safe for them to go. With a nod, she and the others started to tiptoe, making sure to make no sound that could wake up their sleeping guard.

No one said a word until they reached the corridors, where there were so many passages for them to pick from but only one would be the key to their freedom. The kids glanced at each other then to the dark passageway before giving each other worried looks.

"Where do we go next?" Sakura asked, looking at the passageways with fear.

"We go to the corridor to the left," Hinata looked down at their makeshift map, "From the map, we can tell that the left corridor have no guards in its entrance."

"Yeah, we can confirm that since from what we can hear, there's no one they need to guard and it doesn't seem to be anything special," Kiba agreed, nodding his head at Hinata.

"None of the guards think it's a good idea to protect a corridor that has no value to them."

Shikamaru snorted. "We're lucky that the guards here are idiots then, if it had been me I would have made certain someone guard all the corridors."

"That's why we have you on our side and not theirs," Naru chirped, "It would've been bad if the guards have someone as smart as you by their side."

Everyone nodded their head in agreement, gazing at the usual lazy boy with weariness and respect before gazing at Naru, who had a large smile on her face. Out of everyone in their group, Shikamaru, they could all agreed, was the smartest kid even if he was lazy at times to do any work. At the age of four Shikamaru had beaten most of the adults, except his father, in a game of shogi if Naru remembered correctly. She remembered how she used to get so irritated how the laziest boy in her kindergarten could beat her in a game of Shogi. She only stopped getting angry when her father told her that not even he could beat Shikamaru in the game, saying how everyone in Shikamaru's clan were people with a very high IQ and were known to be excellent strategist.

Only now did she learn what the word strategist mean.

"I-I'm scared Naru-neechan," Konohamaru muttered, tugging on the sleeves of her ragged shirt.

"I know," Naru forced herself to smile, knowing she couldn't show the little boy her fear, "But it will be all over when we get out of this place…who knows Konohamaru you might be able to join a guild."

She bit her lips when Konohamaru gave her that boyish smile of his. How had it been since she seen her little brother figure smile like that? How long had it been since she seen him this happy? Staring at the smiling little boy, she realized numbly that it had been so long since he gave her that kind of smile. They had been in this place for such a long time that even Konohamaru had slowly forgotten how to smile.

As they walked along, Naru could feel her heart beginning to ache as she listened to the moans and cries of the slaves from the upper levels. This place was their nightmare. The Tower of Heaven was nothing like its name, it was a prison filled with so much painful memories. This place didn't allow anyone to be who they really were, only making them be shells of who they used to be. Everywhere they walked, they were surrounded by monsters, who treated them like they were dogs, as if they were the dirt beneath their shoes. Even if you say one word to them or even look as if you talk back to them then those monsters were going to beat you up.

"Stop walking!" Sasuke hissed, pushing them to hide in one of the larger cupboards that the Tower of Heaven had. Naru slowed her breathing and covered Konohamaru's mouth as they listened to the footsteps that were heading their way.

Time seemed to have slowed down as they waited for the loud footsteps to disappear. Naru grimaced when she felt sweat forming on her forehead. Using her other hand, she wiped the sweat off of her forehead before doing the same to Konohamaru, who looked up at her in confusion. She pursed her lips and gave him a look that told him she was going to tell him as soon as they got their way out of here. Not that she would since Konohamaru was going to forget to ask her about it like he usually did, which means she would also forget since she needed someone to remind her.

Glancing at Sasuke, she noticed how the pale boy had become even paler, which told her just how scared he was about them getting caught. She couldn't blame him this time. Just the mere thought of them getting caught, made her whole body shiver with fear. If any one of them get caught then that person would be whipped a thousand times over and might even be whipped to death as it happened to one of the slaves here. Even if they did survive that person wouldn't be given any food or drinks because they dared to try to escape from this hellhole. If that didn't help, there was the potential of losing a limb or any other body part. The guards had done it once to a man, who tried to escape from this place. She shuddered as she remembered his cries when the guards dragged him pass their prison.

That night everyone in the tower stayed awake, listening in horror to the man's screams for mercy and forgiveness.

"There's no one here!" One of the guards cried, snapping her out of her train of thought.

"There's also no one here," The other guards cried, "Now let's leave! I'm starving to get some food with the others!"

She bit her lips as she tried to hold herself back from growling and snapping at those guards. She wanted so badly to punch them, knock them down and yell at them for making them suffer, for taking them away from their families but if she did anything now then everyone was going to get caught. How dare those monsters talked about starving? Did they even know what the hell that word meant? Of course not! If anyone deserve to say they were starving then it should be them, should be the slaves who were stuck here! What do those bastard do to deserve to say the word starving? Nothing that's what! Everyday, they ignored their cries and licked their lips as they ate a good piece of meat. It was thanks to them that so many people die. She snarled as she remembered how Konohamaru nearly fainted from the lack of food.

She tightened her grip on Konohamaru as she listened to the chuckling guards pass their hiding spot. Glancing at her friends, she noticed that they all had the same disgusted look that she probably have. She didn't loosen her grip on Konohamaru until they were certain that the guards all had left, no longer patrolling. Nodding her head at Sasuke's hand signal to continue on, she loosened her grip on Konohamaru and proceeded to step out of the cupboard. Sasuke glanced at them, allowing everyone to see his concern but his worried eyes lingered at her face longer than anyone else. She felt like she should hug the older boy the way she did with Konohamaru, never in her life had she ever seen him looked so frightened and doubtful of himself.

They made several twists and turns before reaching towards the entrance of the sewerage. She blinked, felt her throat clogged up as she realized what they were close to doing. She wanted to cry, wanted to hug everyone here and tell them that they were out of here but the other part of her was suspicious about this. Wasn't this just too easy? Something didn't feel right about this. Why weren't there any guards? Why aren't they crying out about the prisoners escaping? What the hell was happening? It couldn't be this easy to escape right? No, she was wrong about this. They had been planning to escape for weeks now, something the other prisoners hadn't done. Almost everyone made plans in a few days, not weeks like they did. Besides, she trusted Shikamaru and his plans. He always made the best plans.

"Am I the only one who finds this weird?" Sasuke asked her as he helped Sakura into the sewers.

"No," she answered softly, "Something about the way we escaped is weird but maybe because we are so used to having them around us that we find it weird to not see them here."

"I hope you'e right Naru," he muttered as she climbed down the ladder leading them to the sewers. "I don't want to come back to this hellhole."

She agreed.

No one wanted to come back to this hellhole.

* * *

The passage of the sewers eventually led them towards the beach surrounding the tower. Naru blinked when she saw just how many boats seemed to be on the sea, looking so beautiful with its white paint. It was sad that beautiful boat had to be owned by such ugly people, Naru thought to herself as they jumped down from the sewer, landing on their feet in the shallow part of the sea. From the lack of sound and the lack of lights, she guessed that there were no guards or followers of the cult protecting the boats.

Today really was a lucky day for them.

"We actually came this far," Sakura sobbed, gazing at the beach with such happiness and wonder that Naru couldn't help but smile and laugh in joy at what they had just accomplished. "We're really getting out of this place! We're really going to become free!"

"I never thought we were going to get this far," Ino admitted, nodding her head at Sakura, "The most I thought we would reach was the corridor!"

Shikamaru snorted. "I'm glad to see the two of you have _so much _faith in my plans."

"Ignore them," Naru grinned, "Everyone else believed in your plans after all you're the genius when it comes to making plans. I think those two would have believed in you if you were just a little bit less lazy."

"I feel so much love."

Sasuke glared at the two of them. "Shut the hell up you two," Naru stuck her tongue out at him, earning an eye roll from him, "Now what the hell do we do next?"

"Take a boat of course," he scowled at her and this only made her roll her eyes at him, "We can't swim to the nearest land can we? I don't know about everyone else but even I'll get tired doing that."

Sasuke flushed red before giving her a glare, which only made her smile cheekily at him. His glare intensified, making her smile even wider at him. Doing this with him made her feel as if nothing had changed that they hadn't lost their parents, hadn't been taken away from their homes and definitely didn't see their parents get murdered. It made her heart feel light as she remembered how she used to tease Sasuke whenever he acted like an idiot. Out of everyone here, Sasuke had changed the most and not all for the better. There were only a few days where she could see the fire in him, the old boy who always annoyed her to no end but most days Sasuke was just a ghost of who he used to be. Today was just one of those days where she could see the old him.

"Yes but does anyone here know how to drive a boat?" He asked her as they ran towards the closest boat. He growled when she blinked her eyes at him. "You haven't thought about that have you? You forgot that none of us know how to drive a boat. Our chances of getting out of here are low if no one knows how to drive a boat!"

"How hard can it be to drive a boat? And don't be so negative, we will figure out a way to drive the boat," Naru retorted.

"You're an idiot you know that!" He snapped. "Not everyone is as hopeful as you, you know! It's annoying."

For the first time since she came here, Naru narrowed her eyes, crossed her arms and glared at the black-haired boy. Did he dare say that to her? Of all the times for him to act like an asshole to her, he decided now of all times to do it! He could have chosen a different time to give her his rude comments! Why the hell was she friends with him again? Not once in her life did this asshole ever compliment her! He always insulted her, made fun of her and always tried to pick a fight with her. Sure he had his moments where he could be sweet but even then he insulted her.

"…Naru, we need to go," Hinata muttered, grabbing her arm and dragging her in the direction of the boat.

Sighing, Naru glanced at her friend and then twisted her head around to have one final look at the dark, looming tower that would forever haunt her in her dreams. With the dark clouds hanging around the tower, the tower looked even more depressing and frightening but nothing the weather did would ever show the true depth of how terrifying that place was. It would never touch the surface about the hell they went through in their time there and probably never will. At least their hell was over and done with. She just hoped none of them would ever have to relive the nightmare that place brought them. She closed her eyes and muttered a small prayer, hoping that the slaves would survive. She wondered what her parents would have done, would they have stayed where they were? No, they would have done the same thing except maybe more because maybe they would have led a rebellion, would have continued to fight to the end unlike what they were doing.

If only she was as brave as her parents were…

"We'll finally be able to take a bath in hot water!" Ino cried, snapping her from her train of thought. The platinum blonde grinned, clapped her hands together as she described with vivid details about her plans for when they finally got out of the small island, about how she was going to buy all the cutes clothes she could get and how she was going to find a cute boyfriend—this earned eye rolls from her, Sasuke, Hinata, Kiba and Shikamaru while the others furrowed their eyebrows in confusion. It seemed like Ino hadn't changed in some aspects after all but none of them had the heart to say it out loud.

Yet despite her irritation with Ino, Naru couldn't help but smile as her friend continued to talk about her dreams. It had been so long since she saw her friend this happy, so long since Ino talked about getting a cute boyfriend. The last time she spoke like that was the day their whole family was murdered after that day Ino had lost that spark in her eyes. With Ino like this, Naru had more hope that the others would slowly revert back to the people they used to be, sure they wouldn't be completely themselves but at least they wouldn't be like ghosts like they were now.

She blinked her eyes and frowned, glancing at the others who chattered as they talked about their plans for the future. _What am I going to do when we get out of here?_ She asked herself, gazing at Konohamaru who smiled and cheered as he talked to Sasuke, _I don't know any magic, my parents are dead and so is my Aniki…where do I go? I can't go to a mage guild if I don't know magic! Where do I go? I have nowhere to go to._

"It's time to go dobe," Sasuke said, looking even more tired than the times when they worked out in the blazing sun, "We're finally going to be free from this hell just like you always wanted. You always seem to get what you want don't you?"

She blinked and smiled when she saw the small, teasing smile playing on his lips. She nodded her head, opened her mouth to tell him that she was the village leader's daughter before closing her mouth as she remembered that she was no longer that girl anymore. Shaking her head, she gave him a wider smile. He sighed and bend down to his knees, earning a raised eyebrow from her. Letting out a growl, he gestured for her to start climbing onto the boat. Chuckling nervously, she scrambled onto the deck and pulled Sasuke up with the help of the others.

"So…how the hell are we going to drive this thing?" Kiba kicked the beer barrel out of their way as they made their way to the control room. The others stared at them with confusion while Naru kicked the door of the control room opened. "If we can't drive it then we'll be in seriously trouble aren't we?"

Rubbing her chin, Naru racked her brain to see if the guards had ever talked about the boats, about how to operate them. It wouldn't surprise her if they did. The guards after all did talk about everything, not even caring about the fact there were surrounded by young kids who didn't need to know about that kind of stuff. She groaned. None of the guards ever talked about the damn boats, apparently boats weren't as important as taking about women. She clenched her hands into a fist when she saw the hopeful look in Konohamaru's eyes. Her throat suddenly felt dried when she saw the tears of joy in his eyes. They needed to get out of here, especially the boy in front of her. Her little brother figure had never really got to live outside the tower, had never seen the outside world. To be fair none of them had but Konohamaru was just six. At the age of three, her little brother had seen their village destroyed, saw his father and grandfather murdered. Those monsters had torn him away from his mother, making the boy think she was still alive.

Maybe his mother was alive but Naru doubted it.

"We have to try to make the boat work," Choji said, "If we don't get out of here now then we'll get caught! We won't ever have this chance to escape and tell people about this place! I don't want to see anymore people suffering from this place."

They all nodded in agreement. Having experienced this pain and knowing the fates of the people staying here, they all knew that the one way for the people here to truly survive was for them to get out of this island and away from those monsters. The only way for them to do that was to tell someone about this. This was the only way they could save these people. Taking the other slaves with them was risky; as Shikamaru had said to her when Choji and her suggested that they take the other slaves with them if this plan failed then the other slaves would suffer from the hopes that they raised. It was the one chance Shikamaru said he couldn't take.

"It seems like we'll have to play around with it," Shikamaru sighed, "If the traps work then we've at least an hour before we can work this thing…if the traps don't work then we got a couple of minutes."

"That's not enough time," Sasuke grumbled.

"Why the hell are we still talking?" The two boys blinked their eyes at her. "Less talking and more doing, Shikamaru you'll be the one to figure out how to work this thing."

"Troublesome…but why me?"

"You're the smartest one between us all," Naru stated, crossing her arms at him. "So you've less chance of messing this up! Sasuke is smart but he is also an idiot—"

"Says the idiot herself!"

"What did you call me bastard?"

"You heard me!"

"We don't have much time you two!" Hinata said angrily at the bickering children. " I thought the two of you would behave better than this."

The two of them flinched at their friend's words before glancing at each other with a look that said that they would finish this argument later. Taking a seat on the wooden floor, she looked at the smiling faces of her friends, who chatted effortlessly about their plans for the future. She blinked her eyes when she felt a pair small arms wrapped around her waist and smiled softly when she saw the smiling face of Konohamaru. She listened half-heartedly as he chatted about how they were all now going to become a real family. She felt her throat become dry at his words. She didn't agree to his thoughts, not when she knew her feelings. From the moment he came to their prison, he became a part of their makeshift family. They all had been together for such a long time that she already considered all of them a part of her family. Apparently Sasuke agreed because his eyes flickered to the others then to her before returning to Konohamaru, who was smiling and laughing with the others.

But it was Hinata who broke the boy's endless chatter. Smiling serenely, the blue-haired girl ruffled the boy's hair while looking at the others.

"Konohamaru, we're all family." Hinata stared at her, which told her that she understood her feelings about this. "We've been in that tower for so long that we consider everyone our family."

The little boy blinked, looked at them with wide eyes as if he never realized that they considered him a part of their large family. Naru wiped her eyes when she saw the joyful look in his eyes and how his mouth curled into a big toothless smile. She smiled when she saw the relaxed expression on his face.

"You really think of me like family?"

"Why wouldn't we?" Naru asked.

"Because, I'm not related to anyone of you and I don't remember our village very well. I thought that you guys were sad that I don't remember anything. All of you keep talking about your family that I thought you didn't consider me as family. I'm not related to any of you so…"

"It doesn't matter, Konohamaru." The blonde said softly. "To me, you're my younger brother that I love with all my heart."

"Really?"

"To me, you're the closest thing that I've got to a younger brother. Watching you smile and laugh were what kept me going in that hell hole, because you gave me the strength to want to leave this place, to make sure we all get out of here. You were one of the main reasons why I pushed for us to escape." Naru grinned. "I don't know about you, but you are my little brother, blood or not."

One small, stubborn tear slid down Konohamaru's face. "You're my big sister, Naru-neechan."

Sasuke shifted uncomfortable, carefully placing his hand on Naru's shoulder. "Why the hell are the two of you speaking like you're going to die?"

"I guess it does sound like that doesn't it?" mused Naru. "I guess it's because…I don't know what's going to happen to me."

Sasuke frowned and looked at her with concern. "You will be fine." He said firmly. "I won't let anything happened to you…you're my best-friend and I will be damned if you get hurt."

"I'm sorry to interrupt the heartfelt speech." Shikamaru said sarcastically. "But I'm proud to say that I think that I might be able to work this thing."

"Oh that's good because…they're coming!" Kiba yelled, pointing towards the guards that were running towards them. There was a whole fleet of guards charging towards them, each one of them carried weapons that they had no doubt was going to be used for their punishment. If she could see the guards faces, Naru would have no doubt that their faces would be as red as when her mother's older cousin got seriously drunk.

"Come back here, you brats!" the nearest guard yelled. "You're going to get it when we reach you guys! We're going to punish each one of you for what you did"

"How long do you think we might have before they arrive?" Ino asked, bunching her rag skirt together as the guards yelled detailed descriptions of each one of their punishments.

"By the look of things, I will say twenty minutes." Kiba muttered, noticing that the nearest guard was losing power.

For a brief second, tense silence wrapped around the group of children, reminding them of a wet blanket that was just too heavy for them to carry and was just ready to suffocate them to death. Gulping, Naru glanced wildly at Shikamaru, who immediately started pressing the controls frantically while the others started to cry out a little prayer. She could see the tiny specks of the soldiers becoming larger, telling her that it would be a matter of minutes before they come, before they reached to them and dragged them back to their hell. She swallowed the lump in her throat, took several calming breaths before glancing at Sasuke, who had a pale look on his face. What the hell will happen to the others if they got caught? Sure she said she would take the blame but who was to say they wouldn't punish her friends? Apparently Konohamaru must have noticed her fear because his grip on her waist had gotten tighter, making it hard for her to breath. But it was Hinata who pacified her fear. Leaning forward, the younger girl placed her hand on her shoulder and squeezed her shoulder as if to remind her she wasn't the only on here.

"Don't be scared Naru-chan," Hinata said with a calm tone, "We're going to get out of here like we always wanted, we'll be free from this place right? And we're going to find the other survivors."

She felt her fear drained away when she heard Hinata's words, remembered what she said to the others about the idea of freedom. Taking in a couple of deep breaths, Naru shot a large smile at her friend before keeping her expression blank as she allowed the muscles on her face to relax.

Hinata frowned. "Why? Aren't you going to help us find the others."

"I wish but no," she said, feebly shaking her head. "I'm just…just going to see if I could find any belonging of my parents."

"I like to hope they didn't take all of it way. I want just one little reminder of them. I want to have my mother's necklace and my father's spellbook. I want the photos of my parents and me. I want to see if there might be any remains of my house. I want to see if one of the houses might be in tact. I want to see if they have…if they have buried _them._"

They all looked down at their feet, a sobering silence loomed over them, covering them like the dark cloud that clouds the tower. Naru was taken aback when she felt someone hugging her. Tilting her head, she saw that it was Sasuke who had wrapped his arms around her. She felt like a small child when he does this to her but not in a bad way. It was…strange but a good strange if you get it.

The sounds of the roaring engines surprised them but she was grateful. It just means that they are going to escape from here. She found herself relaxing to Sasuke hug as he continued to whisper comforting words into her ear. It was funny. He was comforting her, just like he used to do when they were in the village. She closed her eyes and a lone tear escaped from her eye. Memories of her friend standing up for her against the bullies rush through her head. She chuckled sadly. Always protecting her, even if at times he acts like a real bastard about it. But…he was her bastard.

"We're free! Beat that suckers!" Kiba yelled, twirling Hinata around while Choji and the others started to stick their tongues out at them. A small giggle escape from Naru's mouth and before they knew it, the blonde was laughing out-loud with joy. Her eyes filled with so mirth as she stood up to feel the wind stroking her cheeks.

They left hell.

But now, she need to find out what she plans to do with her life.

* * *

Naru couldn't help but smile as she listened to the sounds of Konohamaru's laughter, which echoed throughout the ship. They had been in sea for two days now and the two days they had been here had been filled with so much more laughter then their time in the Tower of Heaven. There was no more screeching of the soldiers, no more being forced to wake up early in the morning to do work if anything they could take their time in waking up and do the work they wanted to do, well work they had to do if they wanted to survive.

She laughed as she watched Sakura chase Konohamaru and Ino as they ran through the ship, trying to catch one of them so she could tag them. All three of them had a bright smile on their faces, though the brightest smile was on Konohamaru, who looked to be having so much fun despite being chased around. It was nice to see them smile that widely. She giggled when Konohamaru pouted when Sakura finally caught up to him and tagged him on the shoulder.

"Why don't you join us, Naru-neechan?"

"I want to watch the two of you play." She chuckled. "Besides, I'm too exhausted to come over and play."

"But, Naru-neechan I really want you to play with us."

"Nope," giggled Naru—her blue-eyes twinkle with mirth, "I want to see which one is the better runner."

"She just doesn't want to admit that she's going to lose to the three of you." Sasuke supplied, smirking at the blonde. "She hates to lose."

"That isn't true."

"Sure and my brother is a mass-murdering idiot." Sasuke said dryly. "Face it, you hate to lose."

"Same goes for you, bastard."

"Not true, I can face not winning—"

"You asked for a rematch against me because I beat your team in that silly sport."

"It isn't silly!"

Sighing at the two arguing kids, Hinata walked over to them and smacked their heads, earning growls from the two kids. They glared at her, opened their mout to ask her what they did to deserve that but closed it when they saw the disappointed look on her face. Gazing at Naru, Hinata shook her head at her and Naru was suddenly reminded of her mother, who would do the same thing whenever she was annoyed with her older brother who would teased her about the silliest things.

"How many times have I told you two not to argue in front of Konohamaru!" she said, giving the two kids a stern look. "He shouldn't learn any bad behavior from anyone, especially you two! You two are supposed to be good role models for him."

Naru shifted uncomfortably at the reminder and avoided Hinata's gaze by directing her attention to the ocean. Tiredness slowly started to seep into her bones as she stared at the endless deep-blue water. It isn't long before they reach land and they will go their separate ways. They may have been together for a long time now, but…she wants to get away from them for a little while. Just long enough for her to get her parents' belongings back or until she can figure out what she really wanted to do with her life. She sigh at the announcement of food, turning to grab some of the food that Choji has made.

"Naru, are you alright?" Sasuke asked, furrowing his eyebrows at her. "You have been acting strange for the past few days."

"Have you ever thought about what our life might be like if our parents haven't been murdered?" she asked, curving her mouth to a small sad smile. "I have been thinking about that a lot lately…I mean we certainly would have escaped earlier, don't you think?"

"Yes, it would have made our lives hell lot easier." Sasuke said, leaning against the wall. "…But you shouldn't think about it. It will just bring back even more painful memories."

"Well, I can't forget it Sasuke, I just can't." She bit her lips to stop herself from crying. "I still remember their screams, I remember the blood being poured and all I can think is why are we suffering? Why can't we live in a world without pain?"

Sasuke faltered. "I…I don't know." He admitted. "But why are you thinking about it now? What good will it do to you if you remember this? You need to stop thinking about it and think for the future."

"Don't you wish to live in a world where our parents are alive?" she asked quietly. "Don't you wish that you were never separated from your brother and cousin?"

Sasuke didn't respond, waiting until the blonde went to get her lunch before he released a tired and troubled breath. Looking out to the blonde, he watched her like a hawk watches his prey. Her bell-like laughter didn't quench his questions about what was going through her. Was she really going to be all right? Will it really be a good idea to go their own separate ways? He blinked as the blonde started to tease Shikamaru about his planning skills.

"You always worry about her," said Hinata, causing the black-haired boy to jump up from his seat, "Even when we were in the village, you always look out for her."

"Of course I bloody look out for her, we stick together for both the good times and bad."

"If that's the case then why aren't you going to follow her? If you stick together through everything then why aren't you going with her?"

"She will be too stubborn to allow me to come, telling me that I need to find my family and whatnot, saying that she doesn't need us for what she plans to do it." He laughed. "It's a lie and we both know it. She needs us just as much as we need her."

"She was always so stubborn."

"You got that right." He muttered. "I don't understand why she can't understand the idea that we need her! She's the only thing that kept me sane in that hell."

Hinata nodded. "Yes, her optimism did keep all of us sane."

"I don't want to see that taken away from her. I don't want to lose Naru like how we lost the others."

* * *

Splashing water on her face, Naru stared at her reflection and debated whether or not to ask Shikamaru if he could drop her off at the next stop. Sure, they agreed to all stop at the same town but Naru didn't want to stay on this ship anymore. Her heart already felt heavy, seemed so heavy that it was going to drop from all the sorrow and anger she felt. She couldn't decide what to do next, what to do with herself. She was going to find her family stuff, it was important to her, to her parents but most of all it was her connection to the parents she lost. Still what was she going to do after that? Where did she go after that? What does she do after all of this?

Glancing down at her hands, she noticed they were shaking but she didn't know whether it was from her fear or her worries about the future. She tilted her head, closed her eyes and grimaced when she saw there was a small scar on her neck from the incident with the guards. Was it just two months ago since she tried to protect one of the younger slaves from the wrath of the guards? It felt so long ago. At least the scar was just a small thin line though, it was just one of the many scars that was scattered around her body.

She was proud of her scars because it showed her strength, showed how much she and her friends endured in their time there. Everyone in that tower had visible scars but Naru thought those scars weren't the worse. The worst scars were the one the people couldn't see, the ones that couldn't ever heal with time.

_Naru! Don't you dare hurt my daughter!_

Till this day, Naru could still hear her bleeding mother's screams at the men who dragged her, could still see the men who pireced their blade against her mother's stomach and how they coldly laughed at her as she was dragged to the carriage. She missed her mother now more than ever, craved to hear her mother's jokes and to have her wrap her arms around her, allowing her to hear her heartbeat. At the same time, she was glad her mother was gone. Her mother's heart would have broken if she saw what happened to them, to the other kids and the knowledge that almost all the adults were dead. Her mother was in a better place now. Her mother was with her father and the other villagers, who were all in heaven. She just wished they hadn't had to go, hadn't had to die the way they did.

One more night with them wouldn't hurt.

Just one night with her family would have been nice.

Naru was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't hear the door being opened or the footsteps patting against the wooden floor behind her, but the small flash movement didn't surprise her. Spinning around with weariness and worry, she looks at the leaning intruder with tiredness and weariness, not being able to keep the smile up.

"We're going to make our first stop soon." Shikamaru said. "From what I heard from Hinata, you seem to have plans to go out from here, is that true?"

"Yes."

"Are you going to take Konohamaru with you?"

Naru winced and looked down at her feet. "I want to…but no, I think it will be best if he stays with you," she said. "You're going to take real good care of him right? You won't teach him anything idiotic."

"That's you and Kiba."

"Yes, I'll agree with that," Naru said. "Kiba and me are idiots at times, but I think that idiocy that we have comes in handy at times."

"Troublesome, that's what it is," Shikamaru gazed long and hard at her, "but what are you planning to do?"

"Grab my parents belonging, see if there's anything that is use to me." Naru answered. "After that, who knows? I might become a dark mage for all you know, through it isn't my style."

Shikamaru snorted. "I can't see you being a dark mage." He said. "You're just too good to become like that."

She couldn't help but smile at this comment but a small part of her disagreed with his assessment of her being good, if she was good then she would have gotten everyone out instead of just them. A small part of her wanted to tell him that she wasn't good, that she wanted to murder the people who murdered her parents, who made her an orphan. This small part of her just wanted to leave and charge towards the Tower of Heaven and just murdered everyone there. It frightened her how she could feel like this but she knew this was the truth.

"You know that if anything happens that we will be there for you."

"I know," Naru said quietly, blinking back her tears. "I know…that's why I have to leave because, I might be the one putting you in danger."

* * *

**A/N: Who do you think Naru should be paired with? Also what do you think of this chapter? Please review and ask questions.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or Naruto.**

**A/N: I want to thank everyone who added this story to their favourites and follows as well as to everyone who reviewed the last chapter.**

* * *

Naru couldn't stop herself from watching her friends disappear with the ship, couldn't stop the lingering sadness in her heart but she forced herself to look at the fields, to pretend she hadn't just left her friends for what could be the first and last time in her life. Shaking her head, she allowed herself to feel the dirtiness of the earth, a feeling she hadn't felt in a very long time. Starting today, she would be finally be able to sleep in peace, be able to bask in the silence that the tower had never given her. No longer was she going to listen to the slave's screams, which frightened her to death. In this place, she would never ever have to listen to them.

Slinging her satchel over her shoulder, Naru stared at the brightly coloured flowers that surrounded her, then to the blue sea before gazing at the road path in front of her. The nearest town was just a few kilometres away if she remembered correctly from Shikamaru's explanation; the next step to her freedom was just a few kilometres away. She was just a few kilometres away from doing what she wanted, from getting rid of these ragged clothes and finding the information she wanted. She felt her heart ached as the scent anemone tickled her nose as the roaring waves filled her with heartache.

She was really alone now, Naru realized numbly, taking a seat on the ground. The memories of that place would be the only thing she needed to remind herself of why she left her friends, of why she chose to go on the path of loneliness which had already started to make her heart feel like a vacuum. She allowed herself to remember their smiles, their cries of good luck as she left the ship and the final hug Konohamaru had given her. Sadly for her, their smiles faded as the scent of cooking interrupted her from the train of thought. She felt her throat become dry as she remembered the last cry Konohamaru gave her, the one time she said no to him.

_Can't you stay with us, Naru-oneechan!_

She couldn't find it in herself to move away.

Couldn't rip her eyes away from the ocean.

Just stared at it…

But the hot singe of tears forced her to blink, and the world began to move again.

Slowly and reluctantly, she pushed herself off the ground and forced herself to walk in the direction of the town, where she could get the information she wanted, the information she needed to move on with her life. There was a sob lodged somewhere in her throat, but her throat was too stained to release it and the dryness burned her throat, making it hard for her to make any sound.

Oh god, the ache in her heart was excruciating, burning and just plain old painful as if to tell her that not only her old life had collapsed but she, herself, was collapsing from the pain of losing her family members.

She bit her lips, tasted the metallic flavour of her blood and pressed her hand against her aching heart. She just stood still, waiting for the ache in her heart to dull down so that she could continue moving towards her destination. Her eyes fell towards the smoke that smelled of delicious food. She licked her dried lips and laughed out loud when her stomach rumbled at the scent.

Rocking back and forth, Naru stayed there for some stolen seconds, trying to regain control of her stomach. The waves of smoke scratched her nose, forcing her to open her eyes. She glanced at the direction of which the smoke was coming from, telling her that there was a house, which meant there was a town nearby. She suddenly remembered right then that she needed a change of clothes before scolding herself for being hungry.

She could handle a few more hours of not having food.

Sucking in a breath that felt so deep that it stretched her ribs, Naru gritted her teeth and forced the tension in her muscle to stop shaking. Rubbing her stomach, Naru forced herself to walk away from the sea. Staying here would do her no good, not when she had a mission to complete and especially when she needed to get the information she wanted.

With one last glimpse at the sea, Naru turned her body away from the sea and continued on with her journey with the small prayer that her friends would be fine.

* * *

After trekking the mountain for an hour or two and walking through a rather dangerous path from the base of the mountain with another stony path that headed towards the town, Naru was feeling quite thirsty. If there was one thing she was grateful about the Tower of Heaven, it was how it taught her to ignore her own needs until she got the job done. She stopped walking when she reached a wooden structure that held some kind of sign.

'Tully Village' was what Naru read from the sign. Smiling, Naru stepped in front of the sign and nearly gasped at the sight in front of her. This town was a small town that was filled with so many trees and houses that it almost reminded her of her village, only it didn't have a mountain carved with the faces of the village's leaders. She felt her heart clenched at the reminder but Naru shook her head at the pain, forced herself to marvel at the houses. She missed seeing houses and she was so lucky that she remembered how they looked like or else she would be questioning people about what it was.

"I hope they have a library here because I need to do some research before I go to the village," Naru grumbled to herself, staring at the town's buildings. Looking at the buildings, Naru noticed that the houses had the same design. All the houses were painted dark red with small glass windows and tilted roofs. The only difference between them all was the colour of the roofs.

She looked away when the people surrounding her had stopped what they were doing to look at her. Most of them looked at her in concern while a few looked at her with disgust, probably from the rags she was wearing. Grimacing, she looked at her worn-out rags. Maybe it would be a better idea if she got new clothes first before doing any type of research. She shook her head at this thought, calm down her nerves and stared up at the sky, hoping it would get rid of her anxiety.

Clothes could come later, first she needed to find information on magic. She needed to pick a magic to learn after all how could she become a powerful mage if she didn't know magic? She needed a strong magic too because the stronger the spells were, the more likely she was to protect her friends. Ignoring the looks from the adults, Naru continued to walk down the road. Though it was hard for her to walk because everywhere she looked, she could smell the delicious scent of food but she had to ignore it if she wanted to get the job done.

She stopped walking when she reached the second largest building in the town. Out of all the buildings in this town, this had to be the oldest building she saw. While all the buildings were made of metal and concrete, this building was made of both bricks and rocks. This building was thankfully not as tall as the Tower of Heaven but it was taller than most of the buildings here, towering over them by a good feet. She glanced at the windows, where shelves of books were displayed for everyone to see. Tilting her head, Naru looked up at the window and noticed there was a sign.

"Local liiibrary," she drawled out the words before grinning. She had finally reached her destination though the town's library wasn't as large as her old village's library but it still looked like it would have a lot of information. Nodding her head, Naru entered the library. As soon as she entered the library, Naru noticed that some of the people were reading piles and piles of books. She glanced at the books and licked her lips when she saw just how many books were available for her to read. She looked around, noticed there wasn't a clear sign for magic books and sighed as she realized she needed to go to the librarian to find out where the books were.

"Old man, where is the magic section?"

Putting his book down, the librarian looked down at her. His beady eyes narrowed and his small thin mouth crinkled in disgust as he looked at her dirty rags. Swaying back and forth, Naru narrowed her eyes at the old man, waiting for him to tell her where she needed to go to get what she needed.

"Over there on the right side brat," he said gruffly, fixing the papers on the desk. "Couldn't come in the library in clean clothes, what's with this generation and their fashion?"

Scowling, Naru stuck her tongue out at him before making her way toward the right section, where she could see rows and rows of bookshelves under a sign called the 'magic' section. She couldn't help but pinch herself, couldn't stop herself from making her eyes round at the sight in front of her. She couldn't believe just how many books were just dedicated to magic, couldn't believe she could read all those books that could tell her about magic. Honestly, it would take her a good two weeks to read all of this. Without even checking, Naru grabbed the first couple of books that she could reach.

It wasn't long before she found herself pouring over piles and piles of books. The books she took was either about the history of magic or about the dangers of lost spells, not one of them talked about how to use magic. She slumped her shoulders. None of these books were going to help her in her research.

Sighing, Naru decided to read the final book in the pile. She hoped this book contained something useful because if it didn't then she was just going to leave the library and get some dinner. She stared at the book cover for a good second or two before pinching herself on the arm. She wasn't dreaming. She was actually holding a history book! She spent so much of her life saying she would never hold a history book but here she was holding one, a thick one at that! She thought this was a section of magic not of history! It wasn't even a history of magic. Though looking at the book, she couldn't help but wonder why the name _Dragon Historia _seem so familiar to her.

Blinking her eyes at the book, Naru racked her head as she tried to remember where she heard the book. Did her parents ever talked about it? She shook her head. No, her father only spoke to her about dragons. Her heart clenched as she remembered how her father would come into her room to tell her bedtime stories about dragons, about how beautiful and scary they could be. She remembered how he told her that a dragon could even destroy a whole city if it wished.

Looking at it now, dragons are scary creatures.

Rubbing her stiff neck, Naru opened the book, ready to find out more about the dragons that her father used to love so much. After reading the first sentence, Naru decided to skip the first chapter, which was about explaining to her about what a dragon was. She wasn't a complete idiot, she did know what a dragon was. She stopped flipping through the pages when the title of the fifth chapter caught her attention. This chapter had to be the most interesting one yet since it was talking about the Dragon Civil War.

Pressing her finger on the sentence, Naru began to read the chapter. The book was old and usually she hated old books but this one was interesting, this old book had so many reports about the war, about the dragonslayer Acnologia, who became a dragon. Her curiosity was burnng her, forcing her to read the next chapter. As she read through the book, memories of her family began to swam through her mind. As the memories began to swirl around her, her body started to shake from the realization she no longer had her parents with her. She felt her throat become dry as she remembered how Kakashi-niisan argued with her father about whether or not dragons actually existed. She remembered how her mother would laugh and tell her father to stop with the wild stories before telling her brother to let her father live in his fantasies.

"Dragons are interesting aren't they?"

Jumping from her seat, Naru turned her body around and nearly squealed at the sight of a dark-skinned man looming over her. The man had neatly combed hair and dark eyes that stared at her with curiosity. Glancing at his clothes, Naru noticed that they seemed to look as if it belonged to a king though he wasn't a king.

"Yup," she stared at the book on the table, "My dad used to love telling me stories about dragons but after reading this book I don't know why my father wanted to meet them. I don't ever want to meet a dragon."

"Oh, why not?"

"They're very dangerous animals," she gave him a ghost of a smile as she touched the cover of the book, "One of those dragons could destroy a whole country, which just makes them seem dangerous and scary. I think anyone would be scared to meet a real dragon."

"You're quite young to be reading such books," she blinked her eyes at how quickly the man changed the topic. The man gazed at the piles of books she had finished reading before picking one up to examine. He arched his eyebrow at her. "Why are you reading book like these and not storybooks? A child your age should be interested in storybooks."

She stared at him, uncertain on how to respond to his question or whether or not she should continue talking to him. A small part of her was telling her that despite the fact he looked nice, he was still dangerous. That small part of her was telling her that she needed to run away from him if she wanted to protect herself. She clenched her hands into a fist, hoping that it would calm down her shaking hands. Shaking her head, she decided to answer the man's question.

"Storybooks are built upon fantasy and dreams, life isn't about fairy tales…fairy tales don't exist," Naru answered bitterly. "I thought if I read book that were real then I might have some clue on a magic that could bring me back what I have lost and let me get the revenge I want so badly but I haven't found any clues so far. These books haven't told me of a magic that will accomplish my dreams."

"I can teach you magic if you wish," The man said.

"Really?" he nodded his head, making Naru frown at him. "What's the catch though, old man? I might look like an idiot but I'm not some kind of idiot who will agree without thinking that you want something in return."

"You're right I do want something in return, I wish for you to join me," he answered, gazing deeply into her bright blue eyes. "If you help me with my goals then you'll get your loved ones back. We could use Nirvana to bring back your loved ones."

"Nirvana? I've never heard about that before! None of the books I've read talked about it."

"No, I suppose not after all it's a ancient magic that not a lot of people know about," Naru stared wide-eyed at him, "Nirvana is a legendary magic, having the power to turn darkness to light."

"It's pointless to me then," she waved her hands dismissively at him, "It won't bring my parents back or my village! It won't even harm the people who hurt me. I see no point for me to help you."

"Who says it can't?" She frowned. "It can do all of these things."

"How the hell can it bring back my village? How the hell can it harm the people who hurt me?" She stared at the man with disbelief. "If it has the power to turn darkness to light then how the hell will it harm them?"

"With Nirvana and your own powers, you can summon your love ones, they'll be the ones to punish the people who hurt you," Naru frowned at hearing this, "Nirvana will make the wrong-doers to confess to their sins."

"That's just wrong!" she cried. "If I make them do what I want then they won't be my love ones anymore, they'll just be empty shells of the people they used to be. I want them to be my parents, I want them to scold me and everything! I don't want them to be some puppets I can control! And how will Nirvana punish them? I want them to suffer the same way I did, I don't want them to confess their sins to me! That's not painful enough."

"Who says that your loved ones will be puppets?" he chuckled. "I can assure you that your love ones won't become puppets and who says that won't be torture for them."

She curled her lips. "Tell me old man, how will you give me the magic that will let me have my revenge?"

"I know many forms of magic that will let you have your revenge," He said, smiling at her.

She nodded. "And Nirvana…will it really bring my parents and brother back to life? Will I really be able to hold them again?"

Smiling, he nodded his head at her.

Licking her dried lips, Naru rubbed her chin and stared thoughtfully at the man in front of her. She wasn't smart but she did know what he was telling her was wrong because no amount of magic could really bring back her parents. She would be an idiot to agree to this but the memories of the happy times with her family still haunted her, the way her parents died were still present whenever she closed her eyes and till this day she could hear their screams. She wanted to have one last day with them, replace their final moments with happy ones. She wanted more time with them. If Nirvana could really bring them back then she would do it. With Nirvana, she could still have her parents and adopted older brother again. This magic could reunite families again…but it was still too good to be true.

She knew from the stories her parents told her that there was no magic that could really bring back the dead, that if a magic did exist then bad things would happen. They always told her that bringing back the dead would make those dead people like puppets. She didn't remember how they got into that conversation. She remembered how she asked her parents why would someone do that. She remembered thinking that it was wrong to do something like. Closing her eyes, she remembered how her parents would smile sadly at her and explained to her that people just wanted to have what they lost. It was wrong, they told her but it was understandable but at the age of five, she disagreed with them.

After what happened to her parents and brother, Naru knew she was one of those people who wanted to bring back the dead. Bringing back her family and village was her dream now, replacing her dream of becoming the village leader. She was a horrible person for wanting to bring them back but she just wanted to be with them one last time. She wanted to hear her father's comforting voice, to hear her mother scolding her father about telling her scary stories before she slept. She wished to see Sasuke pestering Itachi to teach him magic and oh god what she would do to hear Iruka-sensei scold her for the pranks she did. She could imagine sitting beside Kiba in class and hearing him ask with that smile of his if she wanted to skip class with him. She could picture the boys and her immediately agreeing to his suggestion, thinking that the lessons were boring. She gulped. She wanted all of that again.

But it could never be like that again. Those things they used to do in the village could never happen again because everything was taken away from them. It would never happen because their village gone. She knew this, knew that no matter how much her heart ache for those times again that it would never happen again. They were never coming back like the pet cat that they had.

Yet this man was telling her that she could do it, that it was possible for her to bring back her parents and the village. She could have her parents and village back. She could make all those guards suffer for all the pain they made her go through and by god's sake, they could have another chance in life. No more suffering, no more crying, just smiles and laughter. Still…could it really happen? Was this really the truth? Would it really bring back her family?

It just seemed so good to be true.

Should she really believe in something like this? A large part of her was telling her that she shouldn't believe him but a small part of her was telling her to give it a try, was still hoping that there was a chance of bringing her parents back. A small part of her still wanted to believe in something as silly as this but should she? Just the mere idea that there's a chance of having them back was a dream come true.

"If I join you, what magic will you teach me?" she asked cautiously. "Will this magic be so powerful that it can make people tremble in fear?"

"Godslayer Magic, you seem qualified to do such magic," He paused. "And yes, it's very capable for you to get your revenge…in fact it is very capable of destroying whole cities if not use properly. It'll be quite easy for you to harm the people that hurt you."

Naru pursed her lips and flickered her eyes towards the final book in the first pile of books she had read. That book had informed her quite a bit about Godslayer magic. It informed her just enough for her to come to conclusion that Godslayer magic was a very powerful and rare form of magic that not everyone could use. From what the book said, Godslayer magic was just as powerful as dragonslayer magic. She could use that magic to destroy her enemies and to avenge her parents' death. If she avenge them then maybe the ache in her heart would cease to exist.

She gazed and tilted her head at him, musing over what to say to him. Would she really join him because of her revenge? This man could be a killer for all she knew, could be some kind of rapist or hell might even make her a slave but he could teach her magic. Not any kind of magic but one of the most powerful magic in the whole world. She licked her lips. Magic was power and she needed power if she wanted to get her revenge, if she wanted to regained her loved ones. This power would help her in her quest of vengeance.

Not only that, if she helped him then she would get her whole family back.

She would be able to see her parents smiling faces.

Everything would go back to the way it should be.

Smiling widely at him, Naru asked, "When do I start the training?"

The man smirked. "As soon as possible, child."

"Since I'm going to be with you for a while I think it's only right I tell you my name," she stuck her hand out at him and smiled even wider when the man took her small hand and shake it, "My name is Namikaze Naru but you can call me Naru."

The moment she mentioned her last name, the man stared at her with wide-eyes but as soon as it was there, it was gone. He gave her a small smirk, making her think that she had only imagined the man staring at her with alarm. What was so important about her last name? There was nothing special about her last name, about her family or were they special? She couldn't remember much about her parents jobs, only that they were mages that occasionally do missions.

Even then, no one should know about her mother or father since they were just simple mages after all if they were powerful mages then it shouldn't have been easy to kill them.

"My name is Brain, child and you'll have your prayers answered," Brain informed her, gazing deeply into her eyes, "There's just one rule that you'll have to follow, disobey me Naru and your prayer will not come true."

Nodding her head, Naru gazed blankly at the piles of books in the table while the older male began to talk about her role. She ignored him of course. The only thing in her mind was that she was going to have her family again, she was going to give her friends their family back and that everything that was once lost was going to be found. She was going to make sure her friends forget their suffering. That was what she wanted besides her family and her revenge, all she wanted was for her friends to forget their time in the Tower of Heaven. She knew without a doubt she would sacrifice many things to make her dream a reality.

She would even sacrifice her morals to make sure that her dream came true.

* * *

Brain stared at the young girl, who lay on her stomach in the ground as she studied the book of Godslayer magic he gave her. Thankfully the temporary lair he found was big, big enough for him to teach her and the others magic. Though he wished there was more sunlight in their lair but that would be fixed later. With the magic he needed to teach the girl, darkness was needed for his new pawn's training.

His new pawn was young and malleable but she had potential, so much potential that just by standing beside her, he could feel the immense magic power she had. It was pure luck he found a child as strong as her, pure luck he was able to get to her before other dark guilds took notice of her. He licked his lips as he mulled over the potential the girl had.

Children like Namikaze Naru came once every century and it was his good fortune that he stumbled upon her before the others found her. This young blond child had so much power, so much more power than even the child of Ur had. It was just fortunate that the child was not suffering from sickness like most kids her age suffered from when they had too much power. Not only that, this child right in front of him was the child of Namikaze Minato and his wife. Minato and his wife had been well known for being as strong as the Ten Wizards Saint.

Just like her parents, this child had large magical reserves.

"Brain-ojiisan, how the hell will reading this book help me in learning Godslayer Magic?" Naru asked, tilting her head at him. "The first chapter only tells me about what the hell is Godslayer Magic, it's not telling me how to use it! I already know what it is! I want to learn how to use it!"

He sighed at her. "You need knowledge before doing a spell. You must know the limits of your magic so you know how to overcome its limitation so that no one defeats you."

"Shouldn't Godslayer Magic be invincible? It should be impossible to defeat someone who can use Godslayer magic!" She frowned. "If it has the power to slay even the gods then it should be impossible to defeat someone that is capable of using this magic right?"

Gazing at the blond-haired girl, Brain tapped his staff and mused how after a few weeks under his care had changed her appearance. No longer dirty and thin, the young girl was now cleaner than most people in the lair and looked so healthy that no one would believe this child in front of him had been sickly child a few weeks ago. With her long sunkissed hair, his newest pawn stood out in the dark shadows of their lair. The clothes she wore were simple. A dark red shirt and black trousers, which contrasted with her slightly, pale skin.

"Remember not all magic is invincible child," he reminded her, "If you forget that then you may end up dead."

She arched her eyebrows at him but thankfully this time the girl did not dare to argue with him about the wisdom of his words. Instead, the child nodded her head and went back to reading the book he had given her. He leaned against the chair and stared out at the window while his new pawn yawned out loud, telling him it would be a matter of time before she got distracted again.

Flipping to the next page, Naru couldn't help but smile widely when she saw from the abstract that the chapter was about the types of magic she was going to learn. She smiled sardonically as the shadows around her weaved together, reminding her that the sun was setting. This book said there were a variety of spells for her to learn and how the spells were all used by the goddess Hecate, who had to be one of the most powerful goddesses in the world. She pressed her finger on the line and began to read the sentence out loud to herself.

Some of the spells in the book were hard for her to believe, hard for her to imagine doing because just the mere idea of what it could do made it seemed impossible. Yet this was a goddess that was claimed by people to be the goddess of magic, of the moon, of ghosts and of course necromancy. It shouldn't surprise her that one of the spells allowed her to take control of the dead, shouldn't surprise her that she could summon the souls of the dead but it did. Though, there were drawbacks in summoning the dead through her magic as she could lose control of them since it was a very strong spell. Not only that, she needed a large amount of magic to do the spell and Naru doubt she had enough magic to do the spell.

"When will we start our training?" Naru asked, looking up from her book. "And you never told me about what my duties are."

Brain smiled in satisfaction when the blue-eyed girl glumly nodded her head at him before returning her attention back on the book. He disliked children and their questioning but he had to deal with it if he wanted to take control of her and the other six children. This girl along with the other six would be the world's downfall, especially Naru. She was by far his prized jewel.

Losing her was not an option…not yet anyway.

Out of the seven children he wanted to take, Naru was the most important in his plans as she would be the one to lead the others.

Yes, Naru would be the one to lead the people to darkness. She would be the one to keep order, the one to bring back the souls of the dead if he could not find the whereabouts of Nirvana. This girl would be the most powerful out of the seven kids he had. The girl's most powerful spells would definitely be able to destroy a whole country if she wished and it would all be thanks to that special spell book in her hands. That spellbook once belonged to Zeref, who was said to be the darkest and strongest mage in the world. This girl would be in the same level of Zeref if she followed his instructions.

He laughed darkly as the wind swept his face, making his appearance look more mad then it usually was. This girl needed to follow the path of darkness. If everything goes to plan then this girl would come to love killing in a few years time. This girl would soon thrive in the jobs he planned to give her. She was going to enjoy making people feel pain, enjoy controlling them. Oh how could he forget that this girl was the one who was going to make the people have a false sense of security, especially the men. If she was anything like her mother then this girl was going to grow into a beautiful woman. So beautiful that men would not even realize she was tricking them.

"Brain-ojiisan what's one magic?" Naru asked, breaking him from his train of thoughts. "The book keeps mentioning it but I don't understand what it means."

"One magic is what some people believe to be the original source of all magic." Brain explained as the child furrowed her eyebrows. "There's so far no way to obtain such magic."

"Where does it come from?"

"I don't know," he answered, "I believe that the one magic is simply that it is darkness, which will only come out if light filled the world."

"Is…is one magic capable of bringing back the dead, and will they be like the way they were before? I mean would something bad happen to them? "

"Perhaps because everything comes with a price," he replied calmly. "I don't know but chances are that it's very capable of doing anything, even go as far as to make your wildest dreams come true."

She blinked her eyes at him and asked cautiously. "Then will it be safe to presume that it can even send a human back in time, sir? Can it do something as impossible as that?"

"Yes, it can do something as impossible as that, there's magic that can go back in time but magic like that should not be studied." He replied coldly. "Besides, that magic is not of any help in your quest of vengeance…if you wish for vengeance then God-slayer magic is for you."

She frowned at him but didn't dare to question his words. These past few weeks had taught her that questioning Brain's words was not a good idea. The man could be kind to her one minute and treat her like trash the next minute. It was confusing how he treated her but Naru didn't like to think about it. As long as the man taught her magic then he could do as he pleased.

"Brain-ojiisan, how long would it take before we accomplish this dream?" she flipped to the next page of her spell book. "Is it going to take a few days, a couple of weeks or months? Cuz I don't like the idea of staying in this dark place and I need to see my friends soon."

"With you and the other future six members then it will be in a couple of years time." He said. "Nirvana is not going to be easy to find Naru, it's a magic that cannot be found in textbooks. If we find this magic Naru then we can change the world for the better."

Naru curled her lips into a smirk as she mused about how much she loved the idea of changing the world for the better. There would be no more suffering. It would be a world filled with peace, this cruel and twisted world would just be a dream as this new world they created would be one filled with peace and kindness. She grinned at this idea. It would be a wonderful world wouldn't it? It would be a world where there were no such things as slaves. It would be a world where her family lived, where the village had never been destroyed. Before that, she would punish the people who murdered her parents and the villagers. She was going to avenge her village.

She closed her eyes as the memories of her home rushed through her mind. She could still see Konohamaru's grandfather telling her and the other kids stories about the first founder of the village. She could see Tsunade-baachan scolding her for getting injuried and dirtying her clothes. She could hear the female villagers complimenting her mother while she played with their kids. She licked her lips. It wasn't going to be long before all of that was back and all of her friends could forget the life they had in that Tower of Heaven.

"You'll be the one that will lead the others." Brain said, snapping her from her thoughts. "You'll lead them to the new world."

Lead them to a new world.

Just hearing the words 'new world' made her smile. This new world would be a world without suffering. Wasn't that a nice idea? The word slaves would no longer exist and no more children would be forced to work for their lives. There would be no such thing as murder. By god did Naru hate the idea of killing someone innocent or even anyone in reality. Who had the right to kill someone? No one had the right to murder someone. It was so damn wrong.

"You'll make sure to quiet all those that disobey us."

Naru faltered. "What do you mean by quiet all those that disobey them? Surely you're not telling me that..."

"You'll have to kill them." Brain said, confirming her worst fear.

"…But that's wrong! We can't kill-"

"Do you wish to have your family back, don't you?" he asked impatiently.

"Yes but, you're talking about murdering innocent-"

He grabbed her by her throat and stared at her with undeniable anger. For a brief moment, Naru wanted to shake, to cry but most of all flinch because the way his eyes glinted with coldness and ruthlessness just reminded her of the guards in the Tower of Heaven. She kept her face blank, hoping the man did not see her fear. Showing him fear would not gain any favour from him.

"Forget your morals child. If you wish to have the revenge you desire so badly then you'll do as I say," he snarled. "Say anything like that ever again and I can promise you that any dreams you have of resurrecting your family is gone. Remember if you want your loved ones back then you do as I say."

The look on his face told her more then anything that if she didn't do as he say then he would have no problems killing her.

She nodded her head and felt her whole body relaxed when the man released his grip on her neck, making her fall down to the ground. She scrambled to her feet and stared at the man with fear. She rubbed her throat, looked at her spell book before gazing at the dark-skinned man. Killing people was now in her job description. Killing innocent people was something she had to do if she wanted to have her family back. Was she really going to sacrifice her morals and her own parents teachings for this?

Yes she would.

In the end, the new world will redeem her and her future sins because if it didn't then Naru was going to regret her future actions.

* * *

Q&amp;A

**Q: Where are Erza and the others?**

_A: Erza and the others are still in the Tower of Heaven when Naru and the others escaped._

**Q:Will other Naruto characters appear?**

_A: Yes, they will appear but they won't really have a huge role to play in the story._

**Q: Will there be bjuu and jinchuuriki in the story?**

_A: The bjuu will apear but not in the way you think and the jinchuuriki will appear._

* * *

**A/N: I know I should have mention this earlier but I'm not going to pair FemNaru with another female since I find it uncomfortable to do so. Please tell me what you think of this chapter and Naru herself. Please continue to tell me who you think Naru should be paired with as well as reasons why.**


	4. Author Note

Hey Guys,

I know I haven't updated my fics but until I finished all my exams, I'll be putting my stories on haitus. I'm sorry for any inconvience it cause to everyone but I need to focus on my studies.

GNFreak.


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